Battle of Mytohyàon
The battle of Mytohyàon took place on the 11th of June, 997 CE, between the Jelbek Khanate (led by Khan Grzkai XV and the Khanate of the Banster led by Merlkai V Khan against the Tokundian Empire (led by Czar Štefan I and his nobles) The battle was fought just outside the farming market in the trading settlement of Mytohyàon. Background The Jelbeks had never enjoyed good relations with the numerous Deltarian principalities since the days of the Deltarian land-taking. Between 630 CE and 990 CE, the Khanate had repelled dozens of Deltarian incursions and occasionally the Khanate itself attempted to subdue the Deltarian tribes with little success, the only ones subdued were those located in what is now south eastern Jelbania. The Khans of Jelbania rightly viewed the crowning of Thane Stefan as Czar in 991 as the beginning of a stronger threat from the south. The ambitious new Czar looked upon the weakened Khanate as easy prey and began preparing an invasion soon after his coronation. Border clashes between the two states began around 992 and carried on with increasing intensity. Tokundian Invasion In March 996 Czar Stefan I 'produced' a Jelbek princeling whom he claimed to be a dispossessed nephew of Khan Grzkai XV and the Czar declared himself defender of the boy's rights. He invaded the Khanate at the head of a large host rumoured to be as large as 200,000 men. The Tokundian army pillaged much of the south, burning a large portion of the Great Perimor Steppe. Grzkai XV retreated north west to that market town of infamy - Mytohyàon. Here, he awaited the arrival of his brother-in-law Merlkai V Khan, who to his credit, rode south, leading a host of some 25,000 warriors, ready to help defend the Jelbek Khanate. Mytohyàon The battle took place in a large forest outside the market. The Tokundians deliberately drew the allied Jelbek-Banmek force into the forest with provocative hit and run attacks. In the forest, with trees all around, the elite Jelbic archers were next to useless and the Tokundians focused their own forces on them. The allied Jelbic forces had not had the opportunity to bind firmly before the battle and this complicated their cohesion in the battle. Czar Štefan sought out his rival the Jelbek Khan, and after a hard fight, slew him personally after slashing through his personal guard with his own elite force of house carls. The death of the Khan destroyed Jelbic morale and the centre wing he had led, fell apart leading to a Tokundian slaughter. Aftermath The Tokundians seized dozens of noble hostages including the late Khan's only child Khandrsme Shlajmai. Over the following year the Jelbek clans submitted to the Tokundians. Despite later chronicles characterising Tokundian rule as brutal ab initio, in reality Stefan I dealt with the conquered Jelbeks adroitly, wedding many of his sons and nobles to Jelbek noble brides and respecting local sensitivities despite an overall hyper centralised administration by Jelbek standards. Sources Sources include official Tokundian records, preserved Augustan diplomatic cables. The famous ''History of the Wolf Nation ''touches the topic although many inaccuracies are noted, such as the error on the identity of the leader of the Banmek forces. Many elaborate songs have been preserved through time, most of them about the final one on one confrontation between the last Khan and the first Czar. Category:Wars, civil wars and conflicts Category:Jelbania Category:History Category:History of Majatra Category:History of Jelbania